Dogs provide unconditional love, companionship and unmatched loyalty to their human owners. Known as man's best friend, dogs offer protection and are faithful and constant friends. Although a dog is a delightful addition to any family, cleaning up after them is unpleasant at best. Collecting and disposing of their pet's fecal matter is a disagreeable task yet most conscientious dog owners realize that it must be done. Pet owners who live in cities and suburban areas are required by laws and local ordinances to remove dog waste from sidewalks and lawns immediately after the animal has answered the call of nature. For those owners who live in less populated areas, removing pet waste is a key factor in maintaining an attractive and clean yard.
Many pet owners collect their dog's waste in a plastic bag or tissue paper. Other owners collect dog waste through use of a pet snooper. Scoopers offer a hands free means of picking up after one's pet, but their handles are short and their use requires a person to stoop to the ground in to retrieve the waste. For those with physical limitations such as back or knee problems, bending or stooping over to clean up after an animal can cause pain and discomfort. Once waste is collected within the scooper, the user is faced with a challenge of emptying the scooper of its contents, usually an unhygienic and unsettling endeavor.
The prior art has put forth several designs for poop scoopers. Among these are:
U.S. Pat. No. 7,703,170 to Lawrence Orubor describes a self-cleaning wet dry vacuum cleaning device for collecting and disposing of waste material and specifically animal waste. The device includes a waste collection system for collecting and breaking up the waste. The waste collection system includes a self cleaning intake nozzle, a vacuum in communication with the waste collection system for providing suction to the intake nozzle, a waste storage system in communication with the vacuum for storing waste vacuumed Into the intake nozzle, and a fluid dispensing system having a fluid reservoir including a piston system. The piston system consistently dispenses fluid from the fluid reservoir to the intake nozzle and a leash system, all of which are ail integrated with or removably engageable with the device's body.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,661,873 to Ted Michael Karet describes a vacuum system which provides a compact power device that can accept and pass the full range of expected debris and waste from the pickup nozzle to the container and which directs the major portion of the exhaust air including entrained dust particles away from the user. The invention discloses disposable pick up tubes and storage containers which are low cost and easy to use which achieve their purposes of picking up, storing and disposing of waste and debris simply and easily.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,478,448 to Karmen D. Albert describes an animal excrement removal device which includes an excrement containing shaft adapted to receive and retain the excrement. A piston generates sufficient suction to draw the excrement into the shaft. A priming device actuates the piston, and a trigger releases the piston from its actuated position and generates sufficient suction in the shaft to draw the excrement therein. The shaft is baffled to prevent the excrement from being drawn up into the piston. Alternatively, a disposable bag is utilizable within the shaft to assist the owner in readily disposing of the excrement. The priming device is mechanically or electrically assisted.
None of these prior art references describe the present invention.